Free PEEP template
A Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan for anyone who may need help to get out of a building: what it is, who needs one, and a free template to download as a PDF or an editable Word document.
What is a PEEP?
A Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) is a plan for one person who may need help to leave a building in an emergency. It is written with that person and says how they’ll know there is an emergency, the way they’ll get out, what help and equipment they need, and who will help.
Who might need one
- Wheelchair users and people with limited mobility
- People who are blind or partially sighted, or Deaf or hard of hearing
- People with a learning disability, autism, dementia or a mental health condition that affects how they respond in an emergency
- Anyone with a temporary need: an injury, late pregnancy, recovery from an operation
- Anyone who may not hear the alarm where they work, such as someone working alone or in a noisy area
Offer a PEEP to everyone, and let people decide whether they want one; don’t assume from how someone looks. Keep what you record to what is needed for the evacuation, and keep it confidential. Government guidance: Fire safety risk assessment: means of escape for disabled people.
What’s in the template
1. Person's details
Name; Building and site; Usual floor, room or area; Role; Usual hours in the building; Phone number; Emergency contact; Why help may be needed.
2. How they will be alerted
Hears the fire alarm in all areas used; Other alert; Who checks they have been alerted.
3. Assistance needed
Can use the stairs; Help needed to leave the building; Help needed after leaving.
4. Equipment
Equipment needed; Where the equipment is kept; Who is trained to use it.
5. Evacuation route
Main route from their usual area to a final exit; Alternative route if the main route is blocked; Assembly point.
6. Refuge
Refuge location; How they call for help from the refuge; How and by whom they are moved on from the refuge.
7. People assigned to help
Helper 1; Helper 2; Cover for evenings, weekends or absence; Who tells the fire and rescue service on arrival where the person is.
8. Practice and review
Date the plan was agreed; Practice (drill) dates and what was learned; Next review date; Signed; Signed.
PEEPs and GEEPs
A PEEP is for someone you know about: a member of staff, a resident in a care home, a student. Visitors and customers need a Generic Emergency Evacuation Plan (GEEP) instead: the standard arrangements for anyone who turns up and may need help, such as asking at reception, trained staff, refuges and evacuation chairs.
Both work best when the routes and refuges are on the evacuation plan on the wall. Make a fire evacuation plan for each room, with “You are here”, the escape route and the refuge marked.
Questions
What is a PEEP?
A Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan is a written plan for one person who may need help to get out of a building in an emergency. It says how they will be alerted, the route they will take, the help and equipment they need and who will give it. It is agreed with the person, not written about them.
Who is responsible for PEEPs?
In England and Wales, the responsible person under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 must plan for everyone in the building to get out safely, including disabled people. A PEEP is the usual way to do that for someone who may need help. The plan should not rely on the fire and rescue service to get people out.
What is a GEEP?
A Generic Emergency Evacuation Plan covers people you don't know in advance, such as visitors and customers. It sets out the standard arrangements: how reception asks visitors whether they would need help, which staff are trained to assist, where refuges and evacuation chairs are, and how people are moved on from a refuge.
How often should a PEEP be reviewed?
Regularly, and whenever something changes: the person's needs, their usual room or hours, the building, or the people assigned to help. Practise it in fire drills, so everyone knows their part.
What about residents of blocks of flats?
This template is written for workplaces and other non-domestic buildings. The government has brought in separate rules on evacuation plans for residents of some blocks of flats in England; if you manage one, check the current GOV.UK guidance.
Show the way out on every wall
Upload your floor plan and get an evacuation plan for each room, with the escape route, refuges and the assembly point. Free to make, and your first map downloads free.
More for UK buildings: fire evacuation plans · fire action notice